Hi all want to buy a old boat(1982) for liveaboard and cruising and am having trouble getting the financing we need. I can buy a house no problem but the banks and financing companies want more down (40%) than I have. I am looking for a way to do 10% down on a 12-15 year term financing around 130K. Anyone know who is the best for that? Also should mention that we move a lot with our jobs and they don''t like it. Our bank doesn''t know boat loans, only willing to go to 70K. Boatsbank (key ) wasn''t any help either. Thanks Bob

Even though a bank or accountant may refer to a boat as an "asset," it ain''t. Don''t be afraid to construct an offer that requires seller participation, naming the seller in your insurance as a lienholder. I wouldn''t have gotten a 35 footer 10 years ago without seller financing. Banks suck. Literally. Also, don''t be afraid to lowball. What do you owe a seller, anyway? Don''t try to talk the boat down. Settle on what it''s worth to you and go lower. It may take 20 "no''s" to get a "yes" but it''ll be worth it. Consider also that the broker has to be paid out of the deal, which, in itself, is a negotiable item. As a seller, I''ve told brokers to BRING me all offers. I''ll decide. It''s easy to say NO, but each offer is situational based on where I stand at the moment I receive it. They can''t shoot you for a low offer that includes seller financing. Find out what''s owed on the boat to begin with. By taking payments instead of cash, many times the seller gets a tax advantage.

Bob, there is some great advice in previous posts. In my younger days, I financed a boat 105%! This is not recommended by any sane person, of course. Hey, I was 23 and wanted the boat... Anyway, it''s all a matter of the "book" valuation of the boat vis-a-vis the purchase price. The earlier post is correct in that 20% down is typical, what that really means is an 80% loan to value ratio is typical. I may also suggest the use of a marine loan specialist (check back of any sailing mag), they know the ins and outs well and know which banks will put up with what kind of tricks of the trade. Best of luck!

I looked to finance my boat. Despite the fact that I had/have good credit and plenty of income I could not find any lender willing to finance with the 20% down terms. All the lenders I spoke with really were looking for homeowners who were looking to finance their boat purchase.

- unless you have permanent resident status you can pretty much forget it.

- even if you do find a bank willing deal, they will typically want the boat "documented" so they can record their lien. Unfortunately, only US citizens can document via the USCG... some states (e.g. MD) do allow leins to be recorded against state titles, so there may be a way around the issue.

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